Do Right By Her
by xxwritemeastoryxx
Summary: Two Shot. Klaus carving Hayley's name into the tree with my own twist on it, and an after life scene.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! So this is a one shot. The first of probably many. I had never wanted to write something as much as I did after watch tonight's episode. And part of me wanted to try and get something written just to get the emotions that I felt off my chest in some way. In my head this had felt right and writing it out felt right as well. So hopefully this is something that you guys enjoy. We can cry together, we can vent it out to each other, but most importantly I hope writing this helps ease the pain of losing a beloved character.**

 **Reviews are always welcomed and encouraged!**

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Klaus stood in the bayou watching as the Crescents made their preparations for Hayley's funeral. In that moment he felt lost. Out of place in the one part of Hayley's world that he never cared to get to really know. This was and always would now be a piece of Hope. Whatever memories she may have with Hayley here while he had been off around the world, being afraid, he'd never get to know those memories. Unless Hope decided to share those memories with him if they could ever be in the same place ever again.

His eyes wandered around the area. He had been taking it in. Every scent, every sight his eyes could take, he embedded them in his memory. He knew this was probably the last time he would ever be in this place. The very place where Hayley had begun to really learn about herself. It was a strange feeling to know that he'd never see her standing in this area again. That was when he noticed a male beginning to remove the bark off a tree in a particular spot beneath two other carvings. Slowly walking over, he noticed the names carved into it. It was a reminder of those they had lost and he new that the male before him would be carving a spot for Hayley. He stood there for a moment debating on if he should just stand there and watch or ask if he could personally continue the task.

"May I?" His voice was soft. Not one that he even recognized in that moment. "I'd like to be the one to carve her name."

The male stopped and looked over at Klaus. Both of them were mourning. The male mourning the loss of his Alpha, and Klaus was mourning the loss of a friend, a partner that he wrongfully abandoned. The male simply nodded and handed Klaus the knife he had been using to clear the bark. Without saying anything, he left Klaus alone to continue the task.

He took his time with it. May it have been the artist inside him or the simple fact that this was not something that needed to be rushed, he never moved the blade of the knife if it wasn't calculated in some way. Even when it came to the letters of her name, it was done slowly, a piece at a time as he cut into the wood of the tree. It was as if he was creating a masterpiece that would live on forever. And it really would.

As he finished the final letter, he ran his hand over it, before looking down at the ground. The slight breeze that passed through the bayou made Klaus feel as if she was there standing with him. He sighed softly before bringing his eyes back up to the carving.

What Klaus couldn't see was Hayley leaning against the very tree he had been carving into. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she watched him. While she had stood by her decision, she knew it definitely wasn't going to be easy for any of her loved ones.

"I should have been there for you." He started to say. "And for Hope. But, I was scared...of this very moment." Hayley watched as he looked up at nothing in particular. "This family. Hmm."

Hayley chuckled as she leaned her head against the tree. "The family I never knew I needed." She said softly even though she knew he couldn't hear her.

"We are cursed to each other and to our home. And I know…" He looked away from the tree before looking back at it. "She needs me. I see that now. But loving her brings her closer to death."

The small smile that had been on Hayley's face fell. "I know that you wouldn't do anything to let that happen to her." They both knew that it would never happen. They both had proven time and time again that their daughter's safety was and would always be their number one priority.

"And I want her to live." Klaus said. The words alone had brought the small smile back to Hayley's lips. She could see the tears forming in his eyes, just as they had been growing in hers. "I want her to grow up. I want her to love. And be as strong and beautiful a woman as her mother."

Hayley's head tilted back as she looked up at the sky as she tried fighting back the tears. That's all she had ever wanted for Hope. To grow up, be loved by her family as well as whoever it may be that Hope brought into her life to love. At this very moment, it was hard for Hope to be loved by family when they couldn't even be near each other. Her father couldn't be near her without bringing them one step closer to the prophecy that would be her death.

"I don't know what to do." Klaus said as his fingers ran over her carved name in the wood. "And I really wish you were here to tell me, Little Wolf." The tears that had been building up in his eyes had finally gave way. The nick name brought Hayley's attention back to him, she caught the slightest smile forming on his face before it was gone.

"I'd tell you to be there as much as you can for her, given the circumstances." She said with a nod as she wiped the tears that were falling down her cheeks. "She's going to need you for the rest of her life, Klaus. You gotta let her know that in someway you'll always be there for her." She watched as Klaus took one last look at the carving before turning and walking away. Moving away from the tree, she began following him. "I know you can't hear me, but I know you'll do the right thing by her. You'll know exactly what to do even though you don't know it now. I know you'll keep her safe."

Klaus stopped mid step. There was a feeling that passed over him in that moment. He couldn't even begin to find the words that explained that feeling. For a moment he hoped that what he had felt was a sign, as crazy as it seemed. He turned to look back towards the carving once more. He took a deep breath and let it go before continuing to walk away.


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't know why I felt the need to torment myself, but I did it anyways and think I am okay with it. I decided to rewatch the last season of the Originals. It was supposed to be help me find some kind of inspiration-that I'm lacking-for the one shots that I was supposed to be writing instead. But I figured that a few of you wanted a second chapter to this, so here it is... A much needed after life scene between Hayley and Klaus that we never got.**

 **Thank you to everyone who reviewed and favored the last chapter. This will be the last one for this little series.**

 **Happy Reading.**

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"What if there is nothing after this?" Klaus asked as he looked ahead of him as he sat on the bench next to Elijah. For a thousand years he never once thought about an after life. He never once thought of the possibility of what would come after his death. But in that moment, his thoughts were going crazy. "No peace, just darkness."

What if there wasn't peace for someone like him? A thousand years of wrong doings by his hand was sure to give him a permanent place in hell. He had always been afraid of being left alone. Would he be alone in the darkness that came with death if that was all that was waiting for him? Would he be forced to listen to only his thoughts that played through his mind as he sat in that darkness of the afterlife? Those thoughts and more were passing through in his mind at that very moment.

The white oak stake felt heavy in his hands. The very last piece that he had kept hidden from the world. All the trouble he had gone through to ensure it had stayed hidden while making others believe there wasn't a single piece left. Some part of him knew that one day that very stake would come in handy. He just never thought it would be now. He thought it would be at least a few decades into the future before he had decided to pull it out from its hiding spot. He thought he would use it when he would lose the his daughter to old age. But instead, he was about to use it now. He knew that he needed to do this. It was the one thing he could do for his daughter to ensure she had a long and healthy life. Not the short one she had recently subjected herself to.

"We face it together." Elijah said as he looked over at Klaus. Even Elijah believed that there was something out there waiting for the both of them. But if there was nothing but darkness, at least he'd be there with his brother, the very person he had spent his life with ensuring he had some kind of redemption. Klaus had done that in his final moments by saving Hope. It anyone had deserved peace over the darkness, it was him. "As always."

...

When Klaus' eyes shot open, he had been surprised to not find darkness that had surrounded him as he believed would be waiting for him. He saw light, colors, things he believed wouldn't be there in the afterlife. The fear he had before death was definitely nothing compared to what he had been seeing now. He was surrounded by light. Light that shown through the tress of the wood he had grown familiar with. The realization that he was at peace had brought a smile to his face as he looked around him. While there was a happiness that filled Klaus, there was a small nagging thought in the back of his mind. Who would be there with him? Or would he truly be alone?

Taking a step towards a path that had been near him, Klaus enjoyed the sound of the crunching leaves as he took each step. Sounds that he believed would be gone with his death. As he walked on, he began hearing voices. Some voices hadn't been familiar in the slightest bit as he made his way closer. But his hearing had zoned in on one very familiar laugh that reached his ears moments later. It was one laugh that he believed he wouldn't be able to hear ever again.

His pace picked up quickly after hearing that laugh. He wanted to reach the very place that everyone seemed to be at. If he found them, he knew she would be there with them. The moment he passed the last of the trees he found himself standing on the edge of what looked very similar to the bayou where the had Crescents lived. His eyes widened as he looked around. There were several people there talking, laughing, and enjoying themselves as if they weren't currently dead. This had not even come close to what he was expecting with the after life.

His eyes scanned the groups of people that were in front of him. But none of them had been the one person he had been looking for. Several had come close in some way or another but when they turned in the slightest, he knew it wasn't her. He began to believe he had imagined her laughter earlier. He had believed that maybe it had just been wishful thinking. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed the tree that held the carving he had put for Hayley on the day of her funeral.

Looking at the tree he had remembered everything about that day. The way the bark came off as he carefully chipped it away, wanting it to be perfect. The artist in him demanding that a simple thing as carving a name into the wood of a tree needed to be a master piece. From his spot across the way, he knew he had done just that. He only hoped that if she had seen it, it would have brought a smile to her face as it did him.

As he looked at it, he had heard someone walk over and stand beside him. For a moment, he didn't want to look at whoever had come to speak with him. He hated the thought of someone seeing him and wanting to take their anger out on him in the after life for something he had done. But looking over, he was glad he had. Hayley stood there next to him, her hands clasped in front of her with a smile on her face.

"I was beginning to wonder when you'd make your way this way." She said as she continued to look forward at the very tree Klaus had been looking at.

Confusion had spread over Klaus' face at her words. "You know?" He asked curiously. He thought for sure she'd be asking what happened or why he had been there in the first place. He wasn't expecting her to be upset with him over leaving their daughter alone. "How?"

"I was there." She said looking over at him, giving him a sad smile. "I was watching over Hope. Seeing our baby girl's first transition." It had caused both of them to smile at that. While it was tragic that she had triggered her curse, seeing their daughter run free through the woods had been a sight neither of them would be able to forget. Hayley wouldn't be able to forget the sight she had seen that night. Klaus had helped through the worst part of it all and Hope had embraced it better than she had the first time she turned. "Then I realized what was going on when I saw you take off to meet with Alaric." She sighed softly. "I'm proud of you Klaus."

His eyes scanned her face as he took in the last words she said. It was something he was sure he had never heard come out of her mouth, or anyone's for that matter. He wasn't expecting them but he knew she had meant them. "I did what was needed to be done."

"I know." She said with a nod.

As much as they both hated the idea of Hope being without her parents it was a whole lot better than Klaus letting his daughter die. But while Hope was in fact an orphan just as her parents had been, they both knew that she would never truly ever be alone like they had been. Hope would still have Freya, Rebekah and Kol to look after her. They both knew that she would thrive as the tribrid she was. And they both would be there to watch her from time to time as she grew older.

"You aren't angry with me?" He asked wanting to be sure that she didn't hate him for leaving their daughter without her parents.

She chuckled and shook her head slightly. "I couldn't be angry with you, Klaus. You did exactly as I knew you would. You did right by her. That's all I wanted." She gave him a smile before taking a hold of his hand. "Come on, there are a few people waiting to see you."

A brow raised on Klaus' face as he looked at Hayley. "Who?" He asked, not wanting to leave from his spot before he knew who it was that was wanting to see him.

"Still stubborn." She said with a smile. She tilted her head off to the side. "Family."

Klaus looked over in the direction Hayley had tilted her head towards. Standing just outside the door of the house that sat overlooking the river stood a group of familiar faces that caused a grin to slowly form on Klaus' face. Ansel had been talking away, his hands moving in gestures as he spoke. Both Elijah and Finn stood there listening to the man with actual interest. Klaus looked at them for a moment before looking back at Hayley.

"This is peace, isn't it?" He asked hopeful. There was still a part of him that wasn't sure he deserved this. That this wasn't where he was supposed to be.

Hayley smiled and took a few step towards him, still holding his hand. "Welcome to the after life." She said as she kissed his cheek before pulling him towards the others.

 **~ End ~**

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 **As always, please leave a review! Thanks for reading.**


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